by Linda Warren
“You got it, kid.” Elias put an arm around his nephew.
“That leaves Paxton and Phoenix to move round bales with the tractors to the fence rows.” Falcon got to his feet. “And I’m on my way to the hospital.”
“I was there this morning,” Elias told them. “And she’s doing fine. She’s getting antsy to come home.”
“I was there, too,” Quincy added.
“Me, too,” echoed around the room and then they all laughed.
“How did we miss each other?” Egan asked.
“I guess we’re all good at being sneaky.” Phoenix headed for the door. “Let’s go, Pax. We have hay to move.”
Elias hooked up a three-quarter ton company truck to a long flatbed trailer. Afterward, he said to his small group, “This is how it’s going to go. Grandpa is going to drive the truck. Rico and I will throw the bales onto the trailer and Chase and Zane will stack them.”
Zane pointed to Chase. “He’s going to get his legs all scratched up in shorts.”
“I can wear what I want,” Chase shot back.
Elias took a long breath. “Son, I don’t have time for attitude today. Zane is right and I should’ve realized it before now, but shorts are not appropriate for hauling hay.”
“He’s about my size and he can wear some of my clothes,” Zane offered.
“I’m not wearing his clothes.”
Elias took another long breath. “As I said, I don’t have time for this today. Go with Zane and pick out some clothes and let’s get to work.”
“Do I have to?”
“Yes, son, you have to.”
“They’ll work it out,” Rico said.
“Yeah.” But Elias had his doubts.
Ten minutes later they headed for the hay field. Chase was sullen at first, but then he and Zane got to talking and things got better. Elias had wanted to show his son the ranch, but he wouldn’t have time for that today.
When they got there, Grandpa took the driver’s seat and Elias and Rico started throwing bales of hay onto the trailer, one on each side. But they had one problem: Chase wasn’t sure what to do.
“Plant your feet slightly apart and bend you knees. Reach for the strings on the bale and lift, straightening your knees while keeping your back straight. Stack the bales at the front of the trailer. Two high and then we’ll stack more on top of that until we have two hundred and fifty bales on this trailer. Watch Zane and you’ll learn. You have to be quick because Rico and I will be quick. You have to keep up.”
“Uncle Elias taught me,” Zane spoke up.
Elias jumped from the trailer. “Let’s do it.”
It took a while for Chase to catch on and it slowed them down. Chase wasn’t going to have Zane outdo him, though, and by the time they had the first layer of bales on the trailer, Chase had it down. They delivered the hay to Mr. Whitaker and were back at the house by noon. They were just getting started.
As they headed back to the hay field, he got a text from Maribel.
Where are you? I have lunch.
Ah, he knew there was a reason he loved that woman. Loved. He hadn’t thought about it much since they’d talked about marriage. He had never felt about anyone the way he felt about her. But for now, everything was on hold and he hated that. He hated to put her second.
He turned the truck around and met her. She jumped out of the car and handed him two small ice chests. “One is cold. One is hot. I’ll see you tonight. I have to go. I’m on my break.”
They ate lunch under a big oak tree and then they got back to work. At five o’clock, they still had the last two hundred and fifty bales to deliver to Mr. Whitaker. Grandpa said it was time to quit, but Elias wouldn’t hear of it. It would just be more work to do tomorrow. It was nine o’clock when he finally drove the truck and trailer into the equipment shed. Everyone was tired and dirty.
Falcon met them. “How much more hay is on the field? Rain is expected in a couple of days.”
“None.”
“What?”
Elias removed his hat and wiped his dusty brow. “I told you I’d do it and it’s done. Now I’m going home with my kid.”
“Man, I’m glad you’re back, Elias.”
Rico fell into step beside him. “You coming back tomorrow?”
“You bet, so get some rest. We’ll do it all over again tomorrow.”
Rico patted him on the shoulder. “I’m glad you’re home. It’s just not the same without you.”
Home. That’s where Maribel was and for the first time he felt torn between home and family and Maribel. But he knew where his heart was: with Maribel.
* * *
CHASE AND GRANDPA came in at ten o’clock and ate supper. She didn’t even ask where Elias was because she knew he was probably working on the house or at the hospital. He would come in later.
That set the pattern for the next two weeks. She rarely saw Elias except when she rubbed his back late at night and helped him to relax. But she made sure she went back to her own room. She would lie awake and wonder if he remembered proposing to her and what his plans were about marriage. Since she wasn’t that fond of love and marriage, she wasn’t sure what she was worried about or what was annoying her.
Miss Kate came home from the hospital and was back to her old self, carrying lunch to her sons while they worked. Toward the end of July, Paige gave birth to a baby girl named Olivia. They were calling her Livy. All work came to a halt so everyone could go and see the baby. Rosie was still on bed rest and while Elias and Chase worked, she got to spend more time with her sister.
Phoenix and Paxton helped Elias finish the flooring and tile in the house. They couldn’t walk on the floors for twenty-four hours so Maribel headed to Temple to buy clothes for Chase. She bought some Wrangler jeans for him to work in, but he needed clothes for school, too. “Wrangler jeans, Mom,” was all she heard. Her son was becoming a cowboy—just like his father.
She bought sheets, comforters, dishes, silverware, pots and pans, and blinds for every room in the new house. She wanted Elias to go with her to shop for furniture, but she wasn’t sure when that would be.
Walking through the department store, she stopped in the women’s clothing area. On a mannequin was a white eyelet calf-length dress that caught her attention. It had spaghetti straps and the bodice fit tight and flared out around the hips. The mannequin also wore a white floppy hat. It was a perfect summer outfit. Perfect enough for a wedding if she believed in fairytales, which she didn’t. So she couldn’t explain why she bought the dress. Maybe she was catching what Elias had—a little bit of crazy.
* * *
JULY WAS BUSY and Elias barely had time to catch his breath. Chase had finished his community service and Wyatt had called Elias and said he was proud of Chase and the young man he was becoming. That made Elias feel good.
When Elias got home, Chase was sprawled on the sofa. Pushing Chase’s legs aside, he sat by his son. “Wyatt called and you’re a free man again. You did a good job. I’m proud of you.”
“Thanks, Dad.” Chase just lay there like he was stunned or something.
“What’s wrong with you?”
“I’m in love.”
That startled Elias. “With who?”
Chase sat up. “When I finished today, Billy Tom and Brandon met me at the sheriff’s office. We wanted to apologize to the sheriff as a group for being stupid. There were two girls there, Erin and Jody. They knew Billy Tom and Brandon and they started talking and then they introduced me. She has the most beautiful eyes I’ve ever seen in my whole life. They’re brown, but they have like green flecks in them. Everything about her is gorgeous.”
“Back up. Who are we talking about?”
“Jody. Aren’t you listening?”
“What’s her last name?”
>
Chase shrugged. “I don’t know. I didn’t ask. We talked about school. She and Erin are cheerleaders. I just loved watching her talk.”
“Did you even wonder what she was doing in the sheriff’s office?”
Chase frowned. “I’m almost sure she wasn’t arrested or anything.”
Elias rubbed his son’s shoulder. “Son, Jody is Jody Carson, as in Wyatt Carson, the sheriff. She’s the sheriff’s daughter.”
Chase shook his head. “No way.”
Elias nodded, hoping to get through to his son. No way would Wyatt let Chase date his daughter. Elias knew that for fact.
“Erin, the other girl, is Hardy Hollister’s daughter, the DA. They’re best friends. I know Jude has taken Zane and Erin to parties so I think Erin is taken.”
“I’m not interested in Erin.”
“Well, then you better get those love bugs out of your eyes. There are a lot of pretty girls in Horseshoe, but Jody Carson is not the girl for you.”
“Dad!”
Elias went into the kitchen where Maribel was putting supper on the table. “You’re home early tonight.”
“All the hay is off the fields so we decided to quit early. Quincy and Jude will start bailing again tomorrow.” Elias looked around. “Where’s Grandpa?”
“He said he’s eating at Quincy’s tonight.”
“Since the situation with Mom and me has been resolved, I am hoping he’ll go back to his house. I think he was afraid I’d leave town.”
She leaned against the counter, her blue eyes sparkling just the way he loved.
“I’ll make a bet with you. I bet Grandpa lives with us most of the time from here on out.”
“Oh, no.” Elias ran his hands up his face. “Grandpa has his own house and that’s where he should be.”
“He’s lonely, Elias.”
He eyed her closely, thinking no one could be more understanding. “And you’re okay with Grandpa living with us?”
“He loves our son and our son loves him, so no, I don’t have a problem with him living with us.”
“You know, if our son wasn’t in the other room, I’d jump your bones.”
She turned from the stove with an impish light in her eyes. “You don’t have enough energy for that.”
He started toward her. “I’ll show you how much...”
The back door opened and Grandpa walked in. “I’m back.”
Elias sighed. “Grandpa, I don’t like you driving at night.”
“I drive whenever I want to,” Grandpa shot back. “Where’s the kid?”
“In the living room.”
Grandpa stomped off to find Chase. “What’s wrong with you?” Elias and Maribel heard him say.
“I’m in love, Grandpa.”
“Love? A bumblebee must have stung you, that’s all.”
Elias glanced at Maribel and he could see she was trying hard not to laugh. He was, too. Grandpa’s no-nonsense approach to love was hilarious. He grabbed Maribel and danced her around the kitchen. “I have a lot of energy left. Later, Mari.”
* * *
BUT LATER NEVER came. Chase and Grandpa were in bed and so was Elias. Maribel was the last to shower and she quickly hurried to her room. Elias was on his stomach in the king-size bed and she didn’t think he was awake. So it gave her time to escape, although she wasn’t sure what she wanted to escape from.
She didn’t want to start their married life until they were legally married. It was old-fashioned, she realized, and naive when every time she looked at him her hormones went into overdrive. She applied lotion to her arms and her legs and wondered what to do next. She could walk across the hall and she knew what would happen. But her son’s bedroom was right there and that held her back. She had to be the adult.
As she pulled back the comforter, her phone buzzed. She glanced at it on the nightstand. Phoenix. She immediately clicked on.
“Maribel, Rosie’s bleeding and we’re waiting on an ambulance. The doctor said not to move her until the paramedics reached us. I’m scared she’s losing the baby. She’s asking for you.”
“I’ll meet you at the hospital.”
“I hear the ambulance. We’ll be on our way in just a few minutes.”
“Where’s Jake?”
“Leah’s picking him up.”
Maribel hurriedly slipped into jeans and flip-flops and ran across to Elias’s room. “I’m going to the hospital. The ambulance just picked up Rosie.”
Elias was out of bed in a heartbeat and pulled on his jeans. “I’m going with you.”
She didn’t have time to argue.
“What’s going on?” Grandpa asked from the doorway in his boxer shorts and a T-shirt.
“The ambulance picked up Rosie. Phoenix is afraid she’s losing the baby.”
“Then we need to go the hospital,” Grandpa said.
In less than five minutes, they were in the truck and heading for Temple. Chase was still half asleep and putting on his sneakers.
Elias broke the speed limit and they made it to the ER before the ambulance. They saw it as it pulled in and Maribel jumped from the truck and ran to her sister. She lay so pale on the stretcher and blood had soaked through the sheets. Maribel’s breath caught in her throat. Please, don’t let her lose this baby.
“Maribel.” Rosie reached for her as soon as she saw her. She clasped her sister’s hand. “I’m scared.”
She kissed her sister’s forehead. “I know, sweetie, but everything is going to be okay. Just stay strong. I’m right here if you need me. I’m not going anywhere.”
“I love you, Mari.”
This was when she was supposed to tell her sister she loved her, too. But the words stuck in her throat. If she said them she just knew something bad would happen to the baby and Rosie. As much as she tried, she couldn’t push that feeling down. “Me, too, sweetie.” She kissed her sister one more time as they rolled the stretcher into the ER with Phoenix behind them.
She stood there in the warm summer night, trembling as if the temperature was freezing. How could she not say the words? What was wrong with her? She wrapped her arms around herself and wondered how one person could get so screwed up. Love was just one of those things she had a hard time dealing with. But Rosie knew she loved her. That’s the only thing that gave her comfort.
Elias walked up. “You okay?”
She turned into the circle of his arms, needing comfort like she never had before. “I’m just praying she doesn’t lose the baby.”
His arms tightened around her and then they walked into the ER to wait. Elias, Grandpa and Chase sat in chairs, but Maribel couldn’t sit. She was too nervous. Too angry with herself.
Phoenix came out in scrubs. “They’re taking her up to surgery. The baby is in distress and they’re going to do a C-section.”
“So the baby’s okay?” Maribel asked.
“So far. Just keep praying.” He told them where they could go to wait and they took the elevator in silence. No one knew what to say. The night could be a very long one.
Chase brought everybody coffee. Then he and Grandpa fell asleep in their chairs. Elias grabbed her hand and pulled her down beside him.
“Everything’s going to be okay. I just feel it.”
“I...”
Suddenly, Phoenix came around the corner with a big smile on his face and she knew everything was okay.
“Rosie’s fine and the baby’s fine. We have a five-pound baby girl and the doctor said even though she’s four weeks early, she’s fine.” Phoenix took a long breath. “Everyone is fine.” His knees buckled and Elias caught him.
“Whoa. You better sit down.”
“No, I have to get back. Rosie wanted to make sure one of us touched her the moment she was born, so th
ey let me hold her right away. She has these tiny tuffs of red hair. She’s gorgeous. Here, look. The nurse took pictures.” He showed his phone to Maribel.
She stared at the naked baby and thought she’d never seen anything more beautiful. “She looks like Rosie.”
“Yeah. My two redhead angels.” He shoved his phone back into his pocket. “Thanks, guys, for being here. It meant a lot to Rosie and me.”
“I’m going home to change clothes and I’ll call Gladys to take the day off so I can be here for Rosie.”
“Thank you, Maribel. She’s going to want you here.”
Phoenix hurried back into the OR and Elias slipped an arm around her waist. “Everything’s okay.”
“Yes.” She let out a long breath and gave thanks for the miracle. She leaned against Elias and wondered if she would ever be able to tell him how she felt about him. Or would her feelings stay locked inside where they had been for years? Would her fears keep her from living a full life?
Chapter Fourteen
July faded into August and life got even busier. Maribel signed Chase up for school and he was ready to go. He would start football practice in a week. He and Zane were also becoming fast friends. She had been informed that she didn’t need to take Chase to school because Zane would be picking him up in a brand-new truck he was getting for his sixteenth birthday. She was planning to buy Chase a truck for his eighteenth birthday. She needed to talk to Elias, but she rarely saw him and when she did there were other people around.
She’d spent two days and two nights with Rosie when the baby came home. Rosie was nervous, but once she got the hang of it she was fine and so was Phoenix. The thing that surprised Maribel was that she missed being with Elias, Chase and Grandpa. They were her family and she just wanted to go home to them. That’s where her heart was.
They had dinner twice at Miss Kate’s and everything went smoothly. They’d gone to see the new baby Livy and Miss Kate insisted they stay. They had a good time and Maribel was able to relax. Then Quincy and Jenny’s new baby girl, Bailey Rose, was born and they went to see her and had supper at Miss Kate’s again. It was like they were married. But they weren’t. At this point, she didn’t know if they ever would be. Life just went on.
